U.S. Diplomacy and the Brazilian Coup d'état of 1964

Brazil has always remained on the list of priorities of the United States policy towards Latin America. The size of this country, its demographic potential, natural resources and political ambitions caused Washington to observed the foreign policy and domestic affairs of Brazil with utmost concern during the Cold War period. The Cuban revolution radically bolstered anticommunist fears, which influenced the policy of the U.S. in the region. The administration of John Kennedy worked out a new policy in Latin America based on an assumption that repressions are an inefficient tool in the war against the communist danger. The U.S.A. offered its Latin American partners the Alliance for Progress, which was an unprecedented program of economic aid. The aim of the new policy was not only the economic advancement of Latin America but also its democratization. However, the political reality unveiled the weaknesses of this plan. Washington did not accept radical politicians as heads of the states if their programs and policies did not guarantee maintenance of ties with the United States and anticommunist foreign policy. Thus, the presidencies of Janio Quadros and Joao Goulart (1961-1964) became intolerable for the United States. Washington supported the idea of a military coup d'état which was to protect Brazil from a communist dictatorship.